In our ever rapidly globalizing community, bilingual education has become a standard in many US educational systems. The inclusion and integration of non-English languages into the public school curriculum was mandated by the Bilingual Education Act (BEA) of 1968 which provided schools with federal grants to create educational programs for students with limited English ability (wikipedia). School participation in bilingual education was voluntary and the legislation had limited impact on creating equality for non-English speaking students. Six years later, a class-action suit, Lau v. Nichols, challenged the San Francisco School District arguing that 1,800 Chinese students were being denied an equal opportunity for education because they did not speak English (wikipedia). The Supreme Court ruled that “the same resources, teachers and curriculum did not imply that the education was equal for students who had a limited command of the English language” (wikipedia). The amendments stipulated that a Bilingual Education Program must provide instruction in both English and the native language of the student while the goal was to prepare students to partake in English classrooms while preserving the student’s native language and culture.
Compared with European education systems, the US lags in offering students foreign language classes at all levels. According to the Pew Research Center, students in more than 20 European countries are required to study a second foreign language for at least one year, whereas in the US there is no national requirement for students to learn a foreign language. Foreign language study for the European student typically begins around the age of 6 or 7 but in parts of Belgium, it begins as early as age 3.
Most recently in bilingual education news in the US, California passed Proposition 58 which “reverses the misguided requirement that English language learners (ELL) be taught only in English.” The NEA, whose advocacy was pivotal in setting the groundwork for the enactment the Bilingual Education Act, is a strong proponent of the advancement of bilingual education in public education. The NEA points out that despite the rapidly growing number of ELL students, public education has not kept up with meeting their needs. ELL students comprise 10% of the student population nationwide and are slipping through the cracks when it comes to access to prepared educators, adequate resources, and high expectations for academic performance.
In view of the challenges facing ELL students, the NEA advocates for closer collaboration between ELL teachers and subject teachers to share pedagogic experiences and improve awareness of the needs of ELL students. Additionally, professional development and specialized training for instructors will help to dismantle the stigma and myth that ELL students lack the ability to do well. Providing resources to achieve high learning outcomes for all students is imperative. All teachers need to play a part in helping students who otherwise would slip through the cracks of a system that undervalues their abilities because of a misguided notion of "intelligence" based on language abilities.
Patricia Ryan, an English teacher who has taught in the Middle East for over 30 years, offers a more inclusive way of thinking about ELL education in her TedTalk - Don't Insist on English. By requiring students to take standardized English tests for admission to top universities are we depriving our world of the next Einstein or Darwin?
In view of the challenges facing ELL students, the NEA advocates for closer collaboration between ELL teachers and subject teachers to share pedagogic experiences and improve awareness of the needs of ELL students. Additionally, professional development and specialized training for instructors will help to dismantle the stigma and myth that ELL students lack the ability to do well. Providing resources to achieve high learning outcomes for all students is imperative. All teachers need to play a part in helping students who otherwise would slip through the cracks of a system that undervalues their abilities because of a misguided notion of "intelligence" based on language abilities.
Patricia Ryan, an English teacher who has taught in the Middle East for over 30 years, offers a more inclusive way of thinking about ELL education in her TedTalk - Don't Insist on English. By requiring students to take standardized English tests for admission to top universities are we depriving our world of the next Einstein or Darwin?
References
Bilingual Education Act. (2016). In Wikipedia. Accessed 1 February 2017 at
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilingual_Education_Act
Devlin, K. (2015). Learning a foreign language a ‘must’ in Europe, not so in America. Accessed 1 February 2017 at
http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/07/13/learning-a-foreign-language-a-must-in-europe-not-so-in-america/
Moreno, W. (2016). California voters bring back bilingual education in a big win for students. Accessed 1 February 2017 at
http://educationvotes.nea.org/2016/12/10/california-voters-bring-back-bilingual-education-big-win-students/
“How Educators Can Advocate For English Language Learners.” (2015). Accessed 1 Feb 2017 at https://www.nea.org/assets/docs/18285_ELL_AdvocacyGuide2015_low-res_updated_6-23.pdf
